Random musings about Verve Stamps, mixed-media and the artistry found in everyday life.

SWOAP-ing

Saturday, May 24, 2008

Hey everyone! This was one of those rough weeks. Not bad per se, just lots of curve balls thrown my way, making me SOOOOO ready for a long weekend. Since it was such a rough week, tonight I sat down to do something that I rarely get to do anymore - Stamping With Out A Purpose. It seems there's always a reason to stamp - a birthday, a holiday, Design Team commitments, new releases, challenges, sketches, etc. And while all those things are fun, sometimes it's nice to just sit down with no expectations and see what happens. I'm not too much of a girly girl, but whenever I get a chance to stamp just for me, I almost always pick a stamp from Stamping Bella. They're just so fun to color, and you can glam them up all you want without feeling like you overdid it.

So tonight I reached for Twinkle Fairy, who has been sitting uninked on my desk for over a month now. Tsk! Tsk! I just loved the way Shannan paired her with the sentiment in Filigree Fantasy, so I totally had to make a card with those two stamps. I started out just by embossing her in black on Pearlized Bright White paper. Next I colored her with Copic markers, sketched a little frame and added accents with a Stardust gel pen. I then embossed the sentiment, "Sprinkle each day with kindness" on Vellum Cardstock and tore across the top to layer over the image panel. I finished off by adding some Stardust accents to the Vellum and then adding three tiny aqua rhinestones to the fairy dust. The two designer papers are from the DCWV Blossoms & Butterflies Stack. They're so glittery, it just makes me happy! :) I taped the two pieces together, tied a pink taffeta bow across the seam and then used a corner rounder for a scalloped border across the pink edge. Then I punched a 1/8" hole in each scallop and placed a tiny pink rhinestone inside each hole. Card base is Soft Sky.

I've also received some fabulous RAK's lately that got buried in the big rush to tear apart my office for the arrival of my new office furniture last weekend. I've dug them out and shared them below.

The first one is a Blogger RAK from Stephanie H. This card is just so lovely. I love the rounded corners and the dimension of the beautiful flower from Embrace Life. Stephanie wrote the sweetest note inside too about how much she enjoys my sketches. I've definitely been struggling with trying to fit time for those sketches in lately and it was really encouraging to read her note. Thanks Stephanie -you totally brightened my day!

The second card is from Colleen M. She sent this as a thank you for the Verve stamp sets she won as blog candy on Jen del Muro's blog. It's so pretty and happy, I smile each time I look at it. Thanks so much Colleen!

The last card is from my friend Lostabella, er... I mean Cindy Brockes. I call her Lostabella because, well she drops off the map from time to time. But she's found again and we had a little virtual stamp day over the phone a few weeks ago and it was such a blast. She always puts so much attention to what the recipient likes into her cards. I know she made this specifically because she knows I love asian art and cats, and it turned out beautifully. Thanks Cindy! I love it.

And I also need to show this Hello Kitty loot that Lisa picked out for me on her trip to Hawaii. Isn't that so cool???! A Hello Kitty pez dispenser!!!! And the cutest little Hello Kitty notepads. She also sent me this awesome SU! Sweet Dreams hostess set that I've been wanting. I just love that sentiment that says "Sometimes on the way to a dream you get lost and find a better one". That totally describes my journey to Verve. Thanks so much, Lisa! You totally made my day!

10 comments

I like the bright pretty colors of your fairy card. Those RAKs are great too - lucky you!! And the Hello Kitty stuff - AWESOME!!! I love Hello Kitty and have made sure that at least one of my daughters does too. Her last birthday (in April) we made a "pin the bow on Hello Kitty" game and it was ADORABLE!! Anyway, just had to gush over your "loot."

Welcome

I'm Julee Tilman, owner and Illustrator for Verve Stamps and founder of the Mojo Monday sketch challenge. I'm also Mama to five year old identical twin boys. To read a little bit more about me click here.

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This blog is for personal inspiration only and all projects are my original designs unless otherwise stated. I own Verve Stamps and have also received products and materials to work with from several generous companies over the years. While I have received free products from these companies, I maintain the freedom as an independent designer to say what I truly think of their products. I will never recommend something that I don’t personally use and enjoy. Some posts contain affiliate links to Amazon.com. If you buy products from Amazon by clicking my links, I get a small commission. This does not affect the price of the items your purchase.